Genesis 50:15 (KJV)

Passage

And when Joseph’s brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him.

Nearby Context

Genesis 50:13 For his sons carried him into the land of Canaan, and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, which Abraham bought with the field for a possession of a buryingplace of Ephron the Hittite, before Mamre.

Genesis 50:14 And Joseph returned into Egypt, he, and his brethren, and all that went up with him to bury his father, after he had buried his father.

Genesis 50:15 And when Joseph’s brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him.

Genesis 50:16 And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying,

Genesis 50:17 So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "joseph", "brethren", "father", "dead", "said", "peradventure", and "hate". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "joseph" and "brethren", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 14's "And Joseph returned into Egypt he and..." into verse 16's "And they sent a messenger unto Joseph...", so "joseph" and "brethren" belong inside that flow. In Genesis context, the local focus is creation, human rebellion, covenant promise, and God's providence.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "joseph" and "brethren" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.